Poison has been around for 25 years. Where has the time gone? From left are C.C. DeVille, Bret Michaels and Bobby Dall. (Special)

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- Birthdays can be tricky things.

In some instances, the celebrated party chooses to look back fondly over the years past. And in other instances, it's more about nervously counting those years and worrying about signs of aging.

In the case of Poison's performance at the Verizon Wireless Music Center Saturday night, which celebrated the band's 25th year of existence, it was a little bit of both.

After warm-up sets from local band Lynam and fellow glam metal heavyweights Warrant, Poison came out at 9:40 with a brightly-colored backdrop, a shower of pyrotechnics, and lead singer Bret Michaels entering the stage on a rising platform.

It was clear they'd come to party.

The band came out, appropriately, to the title track from their 1986 debut album, "Look What The Cat Dragged In," and moved into an array of chart-toppers from there.

"It is an honor to be back here in Birmingham," Michaels said. "Yes it is, yes it is. Every time we come here, we have an awesome, awesome time."

The evening rolled along with hit after hit, including "I Want Action," "Unskinny Bop," "Every Rose Has Its Thorn," and a particularly special rendition of "Something To Believe In" during which Michaels and a local radio DJ brought out a handful of military veterans to a roaring applause.

While the band did play a track from their forthcoming new album, it was certainly a bearable one: a satisfactory cover of Grand Funk Railroad's "We're An American Band."

Michaels and company kept the crowd constantly entertained, mixing in brief solos from guitarist C. C. DeVille and drummer Rikki Rockett. They even sought to provide aesthetic pleasure with multiple backdrops, "costume" changes for every band member, and a fire show that featured three different colors of flames.

The evening was capped off with a one-song encore — "Nothin' But A Good Time" — and a shower of confetti as the band left the stage just before 11 p.m.

The overall set list, though it could've been longer, was about as much as any Poison fan could ask for — all six of the band's top ten singles, plus favorites of lesser aplomb like "Ride The Wind" and "Fallen Angel."

But even though Poison partied like it was 1986, the band couldn't help but show its age at times.

Michaels' voice sounded a bit rougher than in years past — perhaps from too many reality TV shows — and the back-up vocals from the rest of the band members were painfully flat at times. Michaels didn't make things any better for himself with a particularly awful attempt at rapping during a verse of "Nothin' But A Good Time."

Perhaps the biggest sign of Father Time's presence, however, was the crowd. While those in attendance were enthusiastic, it was hard not to notice an almost-empty third tier of seats.

Nevertheless, Poison pulled off an entertaining show and made sure that their devoted Birmingham fans knew they were appreciated.

"This," said Michaels at the end of the night, "right here, right now, is what we live for. Thank you for 25 years."